The Abilene store closed in June due to nonpayment of rent, according to Abilene Reporter-News reports.

The chain and the landlord that owns the Amarillo property at 8720 W. Interstate 40 asked Reynolds to also pick up the franchise here, his wife, Kathy, said Friday.

The couple has run Red Robins since 1999. Besides recent acquisitions, the couple owns six Red Robins in Houston and two in Fort Worth, Kathy Reynolds said.

“When this one came available, we jumped at the chance,” she said.

Red Robin International had attempted, in its court battle with Cumby, to press the former franchisee to either pay up or turn the restaurant over to a new owner.

“We wish we could have been able to get involved in a positive way and have some sort of transition, so that the (Amarillo) store was never closed, so that team members were never unemployed and so that guests were served,” Kathy Reynolds said. “But that didn’t happen.”

In recent weeks, the store has been refurbished with fresh paint, landscaping, a new mural and many repairs, she said.

The Reynoldses also have worked to build new relationships with vendors, Kathy Reynolds said.

Several former employees have been rehired. The store will open with a staff of about 90, she said.

An e-mail sent Thursday to invited guests offers a reservation-only sneak preview in the days leading up to Oct. 29.

The restaurant will have an updated menu and promotions, including an Oktoberfest burger with black forest ham, beer mustard and Swiss cheese, Kathy Reynolds said.

During its first seven days of operation, the store will donate 50 cents from the sale of any burger to the Eveline Rivers Christmas Project, Kathy Reynolds said.

Red Robin International terminated Early Bird’s franchise agreement in 2011, though Cumby continued to operate the restaurant as a Red Robin for more than 18 months during legal wrangling.

Early Bird and Cumby have petitioned 320th District Court Judge Don Emerson to lift the injunction and allow the disagreement to be decided in lawsuit filed in May in Arapahoe County, Colo., District Court, according to court documents.